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Literary Fiction
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| Critics: |
From the acclaimed author of Beating Heart Baby, an immersive novel following three estranged high schoolers who are pulled into a video game to pursue the disappearance of their friend.
Three years ago, Elle (the "E" in the self-proclaimed L.O.V.E. Club) disappeared from Calendula, an affluent Chinese American suburb in inland California. Soon afterward, Liberty and Vera ("L" and "V") moved away, leaving O alone with her grief, abandonment, and confusion... until Liberty and Vera return for their senior year of high school.
Though the L.O.V.E. Club's three remaining members once bonded as outcasts and gamers, they can't pick up the pieces of their friendship. But the girls are drawn back to their old clubhouse, where they discover, loaded for them to play, a new game created by none other than the missing Elle.
One click, and Liberty, Vera, and O are ported into Morning Glory, an ever-evolving botanical fantasy coded with their lived experiences, complicated history, and repressed insecurities. Unbeknownst to the others, O can't remember the events surrounding Elle's disappearance―but within the game, Elle has sent O a cryptic hint about Morning Glory's real nature.
While Liberty and Vera defeat increasingly sinister bosses, O grapples with the secret knowledge that her deepest wish, to reunite with Elle, might just come true. But as the girls progress through Morning Glory, O begins to wonder how well she actually knew any of her former best friends and if she's ready to confront the hard truths―and dangerous revelations―about Elle in her returning memories.
"Lushly detailed worldbuilding by Min makes for an immersive adventure that explores hard truths and dangerous revelations about the Chinese American characters' friendships and differing upbringings. Raw, emotive prose captures each girl's grappling with bullying, familial tumult, loneliness, and sexual, racial, and gender identity." —Publishers Weekly
"Min's sophomore novel is full of vivid and imaginative action and horror elements, but its true heart lies in the mystery (and gut-punch reveal) of the circumstances behind Elle's disappearance. An emotional thriller that explores themes of memory and friendship." —Kirkus Reviews
"The L.O.V.E. Club is a beautifully written novel that will leave you with stars in your eyes and tenderness in your heart. Nostalgia personified meets generational curse in this story and no one nails this dangerous mix better than Min. Their ability to cut you to ribbons while lovingly stitching you back together in the same tale is what truly sets them apart." ―Vincent Tirado, author of Burn Down, Rise Up
"Imagine a story that combines mystery, horror, sci-fi, teen angst, gaming, botany, and some of the most stunningly mind-bending visuals this side of a Miyazaki film, grounded in the emotional truth and observational powers of a poet. Only Lio Min could pull this off." ―Sean McGinty, author of Rainbow in the Dark
Lio Min is the acclaimed author of Beating Heart Baby, a longtime music reporter, a MacDowell fellow, and a fullmetal optimist. The L.O.V.E. Club is their second novel. Min lives in Oakland, California, and writes toward the future.
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